Lubrication of knitting machines



May 10, 1955 H. F. MQDANIEL, SR 2,707,872

LUBRICATION OF KNITTING MACHINES Filed Feb. 9, 1954 Ill l3 l3 2 2o We! MM; IO 1 4T} F|G.2 F|G.3

INVENTOR. HOBERT F. M DANIEL, SR

ATTORNEY United States Patent LUBRICATION 0F KNITTING MACHINES Hobert F. McDaniel, Sr., Henderson, Ky.

Application February 9, 1954, Serial No. 409,232

6 Claims. (Cl. 66-8) This invention relates to knitting and more particularly to the lubrication of knitting machine cylinders of the type which reciprocates on a sleeve or stem, the cylinder carrying needles which reciprocate in slots on its exterior.

With machines of the type under consideration, it is necessary that the parts be properly lubricated in order to assure free movement and to prevent the formation of rust. In view of the exacting requirements of the knitting operation and the small size of the knitting elements, it is necessary that tolerances between the relatively movable parts be small, thus necessitating continuous adequate lubrication for the purposes mentioned above and to minimize wear.

Heretofore in machines of this type, it has usually been necessary to disassemble the machinery periodically to apply lubricant between the cylinder and the stem. This has naturally been time consuming and expensive and has frequently resulted in insufficient lubrication with resulting deficiencies.

It has been proposed to provide a lubricant reservoir above the stern which feeds lubricant by various means between the cylinder and the stem. ,The use of this meth- 0d of lubrication requires that a portion of the apparatus be disassembled from time to time to fill the reservoir and replace the elements which feed lubricant to the frictionally engaging surfaces. Furthermore, lint and dust have accumulated in the reservoir, or the opening thereto thus interfering with proper lubrication.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide for modification of the existing structure of conventional knitting apparatus in order to assure continuous and adequate lubrication of the cylinder on the stem.

A further object of the invention is to provide cylinder structure which utilizes conventional needle movement and existing lubrication methods for the needles to assure continuous and adequate lubrication of the cylinder on the stem.

A further object is to provide a simple modification in existing conventional cylinder structure by means of which lubrication of the internal surface of the cylinder results from the application of lubricant to the exterior of the cylinder, thus eliminating the necessity for dismantling the equipment to provide internal lubrication, and which requires little or no servicing such as cleaning and requires no parts in addition to those provided on a conventional cylinder, thus eliminating the need to repair or replace additional parts.

These and other objects of the invention will become apparent from the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary elevation, partly in section, of a knitting cylinder mounted on a stem and illustrating an embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2, a section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3, a flat layout elevation of the portion of the 2,707,872 Patented May 10, 1955 interior of the cylinder included between the lines 3-3 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 4, an enlarged detail of a section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Briefly stated, the invention contemplates the provision of oil holes extending through the cylinder wall from near its upper end to its interior, the holes being inclined downwardly from the exterior to the interior and having an enlarged recess providing a reservoir at the outlet on the interior side of the wall. From the outlet, oil grooves extend downwardly and around a portion of the circumference, it being contemplated that a pair of diverging grooves extend from each oil hole and that the grooves of all the holes combined will substantially encompass the stem. During normal operation, the operator applies lubricant at intervals to the needles on the exterior of the cylinder and a portion of such lubricant will be received through operation of the needles and natural drainage to supply the lubricant to the interior of the cylinder.

Referring to the drawings, a knitting cylinder 10 is disclosed which has slots 11 in which needles such as that indicated at 12 reciprocate. Only one needle is shown for illustrative purposes as their arrangement is well understood. The needles are retained in the slot by spring means 13 of conventional structure which hold the n'eedles against the bottoms of the slots in the cylinder. The slots 11 may be formed integrally or provided by wall members 14 set into the side of the cylinder.

The cylinder is mounted for reciprocation on a stem or sleeve 15, the latter being conventionally mounted on a bed plate (not shown) for operation by suitable means. The stem is provided with a key or spline 16 which engages a keyway 17 in the internal surface of the cylinder. During operation relative longitudinal movement is provided by well known knitting machine elements (not shown).

Other machinery than that disclosed may, of course, be used With the invention, the description merely being directed to the machinery necessary to an understanding of the invention.

In carrying out the invention, a series of oil holes 20 are formed through the wall near the upper end of the cylinder. Each of the holes has an inlet 21 positioned immediately under one or more of the needles 12 and an outlet 22 at a lower elevation, the incline being suflicient to provide gravity flow from the inlet to the outlet, an angle of 30 having been found to be satisfactory.

In order to permit the accumulation of a small supply of lubricant for feeding to the wall, as will be presently described, a recess 23 is preferably formed in the cylinder wall around the outlet 22. From the outlet 22 diverging oil grooves 24 extend downwardly and around a portion of the cylinder Each oil groove tapers in width from a maximum at the outlet 22 to a point at its farther end.

Although it will be understood that various dimensions and configurations may be employed, it has been found that for a needle cylinder of approximately 3 inches outside diameter and 3 /11 inches length, that inch oil holes are satisfactorily used with a square reservoir, /2 inch on a side and ,4 inch deep, the depth of the oil groove being A of an inch.

In the operation of the knitting cylinder, it is customary to apply lubrication to the needles which operate in the slots. As the lubricating fluid is applied to the needles some of it may immediately flow into the oil holes 20. However, even though none flows directly into the holes simultaneously with lubrication, lubricant on the needles directly over the inlets 21 will wipe off the needles during their reciprocation and flow into the oil hole. Thus, a supply of lubricant is afforded as a result of conventional oiling of the cylinder needles and without the necessity of additional apparatus. In the event that the quantity received at the outlets 22 is greater than that required at a given moment for flow through the grooves 24 and between the surfaces being lubricated, the reservoir 23 is capable of storing a quantity for future use.

It will be understood that the cylinder and stem disclosed are of conventional structure except as modified to embody the present invention. The oil holes, recesses and grooves may be formed at the time of manufacture of the cylinder or as a modification of existing knitting apparatus. On existing cylinders in which the wall members 14 forming the needle slots are removable, the holes 20 may be drilled from the outside. Where wall members forming the slots are integral with the cylinder, the oil holes must be drilled from the inside.

The positioning of the oil holes 20 and the number employed on each cylinder can be adapted to fit the needs of a particular machine. In the illustration, three oil holes are disclosed at equally spaced intervals around the circumference of the cylinder. The inlets 21 are preferably spaced just below the ledge which abuts the spring means 13 in order that the lower end of the butt of the needle which rides in the slot over the oil hole may not hang in the inlet. needles of particular length, it has been found that the inlet 21 is preferably located of an inch below the lower ledge which supports the spring means 13.

Although three oil holes are disclosed in the drawing, a smaller or larger number may be employed. smaller number is used, the oil grooves 24 are preferably lengthened in order to afford lubrication around the entire circumference. The location of one of the oil grooves is disclosed in the drawing as passing through the keyway,

the invention contemplating such location as well as elsewhere around the cylinder.

Accordingly, the invention includes the provision of downwardly sloping oil holes having inlet ports on the exterior wall of the apparatus, and reservoir and distribution means on the internal wall, the conventional action a of the knitting elements providing the supply of lubricating fiuid to the internal surfaces.

7 Although a particular embodiment of the invention is disclosed, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the specific embodiment disclosed, but that reasonable variations and equivalents are within its scope and that therefore it is only limited as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a cylindrical knitting machine having a cylinder mounted on a stern for slidable movement relative thereto, the cylinder having a plurality of needles mounted for lengthwise movement in slots provided on the exterior of the cylinder, there being a plurality of said slots around the circumference of the cylinder, said cylinder having a plurality of lubricant holes extending through the cylinder, each of said holes having its inlet opening immediately under one or more needles, the inlet openings being spaced above the outlets in order to promote the gravity flow of lubricant from the inlets to the outlets, reservoir means countersunk in the internal surface of the cylinder at the outlets, and a pair of diverging lubricant grooves extending from each outlet downwardly and around the cylinder, said grooves together encompassing substantially the entire circumference of the cylinder, whereby lubricant applied to the needles exterior of the cylinder is wiped into inlet openings thereunder and received in said holes for flow to the grooves for lubricating said cylinder on said stem.

2. In a cylindrical knitting machine having a cylinder mounted on a stem for slidable movement relative thereto, the cylinder having a plurality of needles mounted for lengthwise movement in slots provided on the exterior of On one machine employing the cylinder, there being a plurality of said slots around the circumference of the cylinder, said cylinder having a plurality of lubricant holes extending through the cylinder, each of said holes having its inlet opening immediately under one or more needles, the inlet openings being spaced above the outlets in order to promote the gravity flow of lubricant from the inlets to the outlets, and a pair of diverging lubricant grooves extending from each outlet downwardly, whereby lubricant applied to the exterior of the cylinder is fed to said holes and flows to the grooves for lubricating said cylinder on said stem.

3. In a knitting machine having a member mounted on a post for frictional movement relative thereto, the member having a plurality of knitting instrumentalities mounted for lengthwise movement on the exterior of the member, said member having at least one lubricant hole extending through the member, said hole having its inlet opening adjacent to one or more of said instrumentalities, the hole being downwardly inclined in order to promote the gravity flow of lubricant from the inlet to the outlet, and lubricant distribution means extending from the outlet, whereby lubricant applied to the exterior of the member flows into said hole and passes to the distribution means for lubricating said member on said post.

4. In a knitting machine having a vertical wall with a plurality of needles mounted for reciprocation along said wall, said wall being mounted for frictional movement relative to a member on the side opposite from said needles, the improvement comprising said wall having an oil hole extending through said wall substantially above the bottom extremity thereof, said hole slanting downwardly from the side of said wall adjacent to said needles to the opposite side thereof, oil distribution means extending along said wall on said opposite side, and oil reservoir means at the outlet of said oil hole, said oil reservoir comprising a cavity of substantially uniform depth and of substantially greater width than the oil outlet and of less depth than the oil distribution means.

5. In a knitting machine having a vertical wall with a plurality of needles mounted for reciprocation along said wall, said wall being mounted for frictional movement relative to a member on the side opposite from said needles, the improvement comprising said wall having an oil hole extending through said wall and above the bottom extremity thereof, said hole slanting downwardly from the side of said wall adjacent to said needles to the opposite side thereof.

6. The method of modifying a cylindrical knitting machine of the type having a cylinder mounted on a sleeve for slidable movement relative thereto, the cylinder having a plurality of slots for a plurality of needles mounted for lengthwise movement on the exterior of the cylinder, comprising forming at least one lubricant hole extending through the cylinder, said hole having its inlet opening immediately under one or more needle slots, the inlet opening being spaced above the outlet in order to promote the gravity flow of lubricant from the inlet to the outlet, and forming at least one lubricant groove extending from each outlet downwardly and around the inside wall of the cylinder, whereby lubricant applied to the exterior of the cylinder is received in said hole and passes to the groove for lubricating said cylinder on said sleeve.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,372,019 Saftlas Mar. 20, 1945 2,401,083 Koppel May 28, 1946 2,556,007 Slagle June 5, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,213 Switzerland July 20, 1889 

